


nothing left to say.

by 21stCenturyHero



Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: First Kiss, Love Confessions, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-25
Updated: 2020-06-25
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:27:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 792
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24911569
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/21stCenturyHero/pseuds/21stCenturyHero
Summary: After everything is over, he finally lets himself have a moment that was years in the making.
Relationships: G'raha Tia | Crystal Exarch/Original Character(s), G'raha Tia | Crystal Exarch/Warrior of Light
Kudos: 20





	nothing left to say.

_G’raha Tia._

He wanted to scream his name once more, say it so loud and clear that it would reach the high heavens, to reach for _him_ , to hold him, to have him in his arms where Koh’a Awandah could make sure he was safe, that he was fine, that he was _there_ , but the words wouldn’t come out — couldn’t, wouldn’t, refused to. Because what could be said? What could mend the space between years and centuries separating the two of them? What could fill the hole in his chest and finally tell him that—

_No, not here. Not yet._

So he swallowed those jumbled words, bit down his traitorous tongue in a way that drew blood and instead, he smiled — smiled because it was over, smiled because despite everything, it was still them.

“‘Tis good to see you awake, G’raha Tia,” he admitted at least, leaving his feelings to those simple words. It wasn’t enough — not _nearly_ enough — but it was a start, the beginning of something new.

And yet the sob still broke his heart.

_No, don’t cry…_

Both of G’raha’s hands and lips shook violently, but he straightened his posture, leaned on his staff and looked deep within Koh’a’s eyes, giving him such a weak smile that it was enough to both shatter his heart and steal away his breath, to make him weak and give him strength. Because he was G’raha Tia, the Student of Baldesion, the same young man he met that day, so many years ago, after the war was fought, and won, and over. 

“‘Tis good to be awake!” the man replied, fighting tears like a dam just broke, refusing to let himself be washed away like the sea that surrounded them— it wasn’t enough for them, not nearly enough, but someday, they would get there, and before he knew, Koh’a Awandah was crying was well.

———

There was something he couldn’t quite name about summer, about how the sweat clung to his clothes despite his best attempts at ice magicks to keep them cool or how the breeze blew calmly across a bright blue sky, rustling the pages of their books and messing with their hair — and yet he knew it was there, knew it was real, knew it would stay forever with him, even after the heat was long gone and autumn turned the leaves red, not so unlike the shade of _his_ hair.

“And thus begins an Era,” Raha entertained himself in thought with a smile, closing the tome in front of him and allowing himself to stretch, and oh, he cursed how his eyes followed him, staring at the curve of his neck and at his arms, watching how the muscles contracted under the man’s skin and listening to the quiet purr that escaped his throat, vibrating subtly and quiet like the lazy waving of his tail. “And it’s all thanks to you, eh, Koh’a?”

The cicadas were so loud that year, drowning all form of coherent thought, so he bared his teeth in a scowl and replied.

“I already told you not to call me that,” Koh’a said, tongue sharp and dripping with venom. Already annoyed with himself, he closed his book as well, turning to stare at his fellow Miqo’te.

It was unfair.

“Given names belong to family or loved ones,” he explained again, impatient and clenching his fists in annoyance. “So if you don’t want others getting the wrong impression, you should…—“

“Koh’a,” Raha called again with a large smile, and he couldn’t _stomach_ it. The love, the care, the familiarity in that single word, all the meaning behind dropping his family’s name. He could almost believe they didn’t need to be Koh’a Awandah, the Warrior of Light, and G’raha Tia, the Student of Baldelsion, that in those fleeting moments, they could just _be_.

All he wanted was to ask the Twelve for him to love himself, so he might love Raha.

———

His voice, his face and even his laugh… as the years passed by, he found himself forgetting all those things, things he once treasured about Raha, but the hole in his chest never closed.

———

“G’raha Tia, wait.”

He kissed him.

By the Twelve, he kissed him, because there was too much to be said and not enough words to _say it_ , not when they got stuck in his throat or lost in his childish concerns. Because maybe the right time was three years ago in front of the Crystal Tower, or three hundred years ago because the war was there, and fought, and lost, and the world ended. But there was no time, no history to be unwritten, only them, _them_ , today, now.

“Raha,” Koh’a called with a smile, and there was nothing else left to say.

**Author's Note:**

> For the first time ever, I fight off my own shame and post something related to my OCs! Oh well, hope you all enjoyed! \o/
> 
> My twitter: https://twitter.com/21stcenturyher0


End file.
